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These pancakes are seriously delicious and filling. Plus they’re easy. I’ve deliberately kept the prep (and dishes) to a minimum for a fuss free Shrove Tuesday pudding / supper, or Wednesday AM post Pancake Day breakfast. Almonds are packed with anti-oxidants, Vit E, fibre, magnesium and protein and are proven to reduce insulin and blood sugar levels after eating. As you’d expect, these little delights are also seductively, yet wholesomely, gluten, dairy and refined sugar-free, and a great option for all you paleo people out there.

To serve

METHOD

Whisk eggs in bowl, add in banana and mash with fork. Add in remaining ingredients, apart from coconut oil and toppings, and stir. Set aside for a couple of minutes for the baking powder to activate.

Melt coconut oil in a frying pan and maintain a steady medium to low heat. Dollop in 1 dsp scoops of your pancake mix. Fry until browned, around 1 – 1 1/2 mins on the first side and 1 minute on the reverse.

Serve in a stack, alternating between a squeeze of lemon and yoghurt between each layer. Drizzle with (mineral rich!) maple syrup and eat. So good.

Tip

Cardamom’s a bit like Marmite so drop this if not to your taste, I love cardamom but don’t always include it. I find the easiest way to remove the seeds is to bash the pods in a pestle and mortar until the husks separate themselves and can be easily removed, allowing me to crush the seeds to a fine powder.

I’ve been having green shakes most mornings since January and am now a convert. They’re quick (I put most ingredients into a hand blender jug the night before), deliciously creamy and clean tasting and have done wonders for my digestion, skin, energy levels and reducing bloating. I stick to a base recipe, swapping in extra ingredients for energy, detoxing, immune boosting or alkalising. Tip: Avocadoes transform shakes into creamy sweetness, are a great source of unsaturated fats and are loaded with skin soothing vitamin E; I rarely sub these out.

Feeds 1

INGREDIENTS

150ml coconut, almond or brown rice milk – I like Rude Health150ml coconut water or sub 50/50 milk and water
100ml water – leave this out if making a smoothie bowl
50g / 1/4 cucumber
50g / 1/2 banana, frozen if possible
1 good fistful of curly kale or spinach
1/2 avocado

TIP

The beauty of green smoothies is that, once you have the fruit to veg ratios sussed, pretty much anything goes. Swap ingredients depending on what’s in the fridge, in season, your hunger levels or dietary requirements.

Nut butters and milks are filling and protein packed, although OD’ing probably won’t help your waistline; I tend to use more coconut milk. You can add a scoop of whey (sweet and inoffensive) or hemp (dairy free but possibly not to everyone’s taste – grainy) protein powder for a low fat hit that fills you up all morning.

I like Pulsin protein powders as (I’m told) they don’t skimp on the quality of ingredients.

You can’t go wrong with granola, loved by all and packed with nutty goodness, this is wholesome seduction at it’s best. The ideal start to your day, oats famously provide slow release energy and fibre, while the nuts and seeds are packed with protein, vitamin E, Omega-3 and minerals, magnesium and phosphorus. Even the coconut oil not only adds creamy deliciousness, but does wonders for your skin, hair and digestion (more info on why I fell in love here). As if that’s not enough, this recipe contains no refined sugar and, I think, tastes even better for it. Crunchy nut, creamy coconut and juicy cranberries; the perfect boxing day breakfast?

I’ve been a bit of a scrooge with this recipe – it took a lot (!!) of amends to get the sticky, chilli clusters just right. However, I shared with a colleague, then another, and now Clare’s Spicy Nuts feature in the Gather & Gather marketing pack with said secret recipe launching across 250 restaurants. Humph.

Filling and packed with protein and goodness, nuts are an ideal snack. Snack being the operative word; mini portions are key! Don’t be put off by the biblically proportioned ingredients; they’re largely spices and prep takes all of 10 mins.

Most attractive features

This berry (yup) is a great source of fibre, B1 and B6. It’s an impressive antioxidant and, it’s purple. I quite like purple.

Why I fell in love

First off, there’s the way it looks on our dishes. A splash of purple in a sea of green. But it has more to offer – dietary fibre, B1, B6, potassium, copper, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, niacin, folic acid… and nasunin. Nasunin is one of the most potent antioxidants and free-radical scavengers out there. So we’re talking cancer fighting, cholesterol lowering and diabetes managing. And it’s purple. I really do like purple.

I’m a big Peanut Butter fan. I was practically weaned on Sun-pat and Marmite sandwiches; I dollop Wholenut Crunchy into smoothies and even cram it into Lindt Teddies. Don’t knock it. Apart from the nagging feeling of gluttony, I’m painfully aware that peanuts aren’t great for me – there are better fats out there and I’m cursed with instant bloating on consumption. Almonds on the other hand, are a veritable powerhouse of goodness. And in my opinion, taste even better when roasted, blitzed and topped on toast or oatcakes. Protein and nutrient packed instantness.

Makes: 200ml jar Takes: 15 mins.

Almond Butter it transpires, is Sun-pat on Crack: Keens cheddar over Pilgrims Choice; Chloe over Primark. You get the idea. Inevitably then, shop bought Almond butters don’t come cheap. Hence my super quick and easy DIY version that costs half the price. Try the supermarket World Food aisles for better value sacks of almonds. Get the full health benefits of almonds on our Seducers page.

Ingredients

200g almonds, skins on
¼ tsp sea salt

Method

Pre-heat oven to 200C / 400F / Gas 6

Scatter almonds in a baking tray and roast for 8-10 mins, until nuts start to brown around the edges inside – bite one of the darker nuts in half to test.

Transfer to a food processor, add the salt and blitz for 1 min.

Scrape down the sides and blitz for a further 2 mins, scraping the sides every 30 seconds to a minute.

The nuts will release more oil the longer you blend. You can add groundnut oil to bulk out your mix but there’s no need.

I like a crunchier butter so I remove 1 tbsp of the ground nuts after 1 min and mix back through at the end.

Tip: Be careful not to burn the almonds when roasting or you’ll taint the end result. If when you bite in half, the flesh has turned fully from white to brown, you’ve gone too far.

Most attractive features

A natural anti-oxidant, storehouse staple, almonds are also richer in six key nutrients than any other nut: magnesium, Vitamin E, potassium, protein, fibre and copper.

Why we fell in love

Nuts in general get a bad rap in terms of our girths. However, a handful (approx. 23 almonds) of this super hero contains only 163 calories and will do a lot more to sustain you than half a bagel or a couple of slices of toast. Both are about the same in calories. Miraculously, almonds also help reduce our insulin and blood sugar levels after eating.

MOST ATTRACTIVE FEATURES

Apart from the effect on our taste buds? Seductive cocoa is packed with anti-oxidants, it contains iron and magnesium to give us energy and balance our moods. It’s even one of nature’s aphrodisiacs. Don’t be fooled by its phony cousin though, the genuine 70%+ has so much more to offer.

WHY WE FELL IN LOVE

Exotic cocoa is said to help produce serotonin, our brain’s happy hormone. And The Love Drug (easier said than phenylethylamine) is believed to mimic the feeling of being in love. This is one Seducer that won’t break your heart. Try not to gorge though; even the best things should be kept bite size for a lasting love affair.

In a similar vein to our Moderation tip, there’s also the matter of comfort eating, which alas, is in no way reserved solely for the broken hearted. There’s a world of difference between real hunger and emotional hunger and I’d hazard a guess the majority of us are a tad wobbly on this one. When I have a sudden, overwhelming craving for a bacon sandwich right after breakfast, I have to question if my salacious glands would be quite so alert to the prospect of another bowl of porridge. If the answer is no, willpower permitting, said bacon sandwich is off the menu. At least, that’s the plan…

The one saving grace about habits though, is how quickly they can be unformed. There is of course, a cold turkey phase requiring infinite determination to resist the supermarket yellow label shelf of Quality Street, but the more sugar we eat, the more we crave. Similarly, the chemicals in junk and processed food are actually addictive, the effects can last several weeks. Manufacturers find this helps sales.

So, the theory goes that having broken from our addiction (allow 21 days…), we no longer crave or indeed contemplate, our former food obsession. I can vouch for this, before having fallen off the wagon, I somewhat naively opted for a daily chocolate brownie addition when concerned excessive cycling may make me too thin. Needless to say, the malnourished look is no longer something I distress myself over.

When going sugar (semi) cold turkey, a square of dark chocolate (min 70% cocoa) after a meal can be a handy trifle preventative. And as luck would have it, Seasonal Seducer cocoa contains anti-oxidants, iron and magnesium, along with the unpronounceable phenylethylamine, which is said to mimic the feeling of being in love. Minus the drama.